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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23724943">vulnerable</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/animealyssa/pseuds/animealyssa'>animealyssa</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Mandalorian (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Anxiety, F/M, Fluff, Mando is soft, Mando literally thinks you are perfect, Previous physical abuse, Scars, and thats that, but not descriptive, but tooth rotting fluff, din is the best ever, mandalorian with no helmet, mando takes off the helmet, previous emotionable abuse, previous emotional abuse, previous partner is genderless, there's also previous physical abuse</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 10:07:58</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,017</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23724943</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/animealyssa/pseuds/animealyssa</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>because of a past experience in a marriage, you find that you have a hard time feeling comfortable around din. to show how much he loves you and that you can truly be yourself around him, he shows you his most vulnerable self.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV)/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>143</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>vulnerable</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>if anxiety triggers you, you might want to skip it. i've related reader to what i go through and i hope this is okay. that being said, din is the best partner ever and you cant convince me otherwise </p><p> </p><p>  <a href="mandowhoreian.tumblr.com"> come harass me on tumblr i love anons </a></p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Din Djarin thought you were perfect the moment he laid eyes on you. Which was truly a statement because when he found you, you were a <em>mess. </em>You hadn't showered in days, had been on the run for a few days, trying to escape your spouse from an arranged marriage. They were not the most pleasant of people, and you had known that going into it. Unfortunately, you did not have a say in things. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">You saw him coming from a mile away - he was actually out to bring you in. A Mandalorian in the woods of Naboo? He could only be there for one thing and that was to bring you in, back to your spouse. The one who would leave you for nights on end to go to brothels and enjoy other people. The one who would shame you for your perfectly healthy weight every day - would call you ugly every day, sometimes getting physical when you tried to fight back. The spouse who would say they’d rather be married to anyone else in the galaxy than you, but yet was trying so hard to get you back just for image and ego’s sake. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Your first mistake was running in the woods. You were in a large tunic that was big enough to be a dress, a pair of thin leggings underneath and a pair of sandals that were beat to shit. Not exactly running material but when you saw the beskar shining in the distance you booked it as fast as you could. You had been able to out run the other bounty hunters that had been after you, but something in your gut knew that you couldn’t outrun the Mandalorian. You had to try anyway. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">A tree root sticking out of the ground did you in. You tripped over the damn thing and fell face first into the dirt, yelling as you fell. Forcefully you were turned over, face-to-mask with the bounty hunter. Your heart was beating out of your chest and, much to his surprise that he later told you, you instantly burst into sobs. He froze above you, his hand having both of your wrists in it. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"Please just kill me." you begged to him through sobs once he pinned you against the ground. He cocked his helmet to the side, studying your trembling, sobbing form on the ground beneath him. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"You want me - what?" he asked, almost in shock. Sure, he heard that statement plenty of times from people - but from you he didn’t expect. The bounty was to bring you back, because your spouse had said you were ‘deranged and in danger’ - but you somehow proved him wrong. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"I'd rather die than go back - please." you begged once more. It was then that he saw the bruises on your arms, the black eye that you had. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Who did that to you?” he asked, helping you stand up and catching you when you almost fell over on your injured ankle. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“T-th-they did.” you sobbed again, wiping your tears with your sleeve. All you heard was a hum through the modulator as the Mandalorian helped you back to the ship. Much to your surprise, he sat you down and started wrapping up your ankle. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He spared you that day. You did not go back to your ex-spouse. In fact, the Mandalorian told you that your spouse had passed away, was murdered in a brothel. You had a weird feeling in your chest that he had called in a few favors, but said nothing and did nothing except cry tears of relief. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Din kept you on to care for the Child. The green bean had taken a massive liking to you and Din thought that someone to stay with him while he took bounties was a good idea. You had no where else to go, so you agreed. Luckily you adored the little creature. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Seeing the two of you interact was what made Din start falling for you to begin with. You were kind, gentle, and understanding with the kid - and most of all patient. Oh lord, were you patient with the little thing. When he was crying because he was so exhausted but didn’t want to sleep, when the type of frog you had for him wasn’t the one that he was in the mood for, you sat with him, waited for him to finish crying it out, and got back to business. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Are you done yet?” you asked him one night when he was sitting in your lap by his cradle, fighting sleep and refusing to even sit in the damn thing, tears clogging his little nose and panting. He looked up at you with wide eyes and blinked and just dove into your chest, snuggling you to the best of his ability the little thing, out like a light in less than three minutes flat. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“How - what - he - ” Din started in amazement, more so marveling at the fact that you, not <em>once</em>, lost your temper. Din’s been there, most of the time just letting him cry till he knocks out eventually. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“He’s a baby. Sometimes he doesn’t know what’s best for him, and the only thing you can do is not lose your shit. It would make him more upset.” You said, standing up and gently putting the little monster into the cradle, shutting the top. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Din had never seen anything like you before, had never interacted with anyone like you before. He almost didn’t know what to do or how to act around you, especially when he started to garner feelings. The last thing he wanted to do was to screw things up, especially knowing your last relationship/marriage. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">It wasn’t even his intention to admit anything to you. But evidently, fate had another idea. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He had just gotten back with a quarry. Normally you would high-tail it up to the cockpit or into the small bunk, but you had just gotten out of the refresher. Towel-clad and dripping wet, of course. You hadn’t even heard him come in or you would have stayed in the room. The quarry had broken out of his cuffs and gotten behind you in a second, taking one of Din’s knives from his weapons closet and bringing it against your neck. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Ain’t she a beauty, Mandalorian? You let me go, I let her go in one piece… for now.” he had said, laughing as you started to tremble. It set off flashbacks to being married, your spouse having his hands around your neck as he told you how worthless you were, hurting you. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">You closed your eyes as you felt the knife start to dig slightly deeper into your neck - until it dropped. You heard a blaster go off and let out a squeal, hearing something then drop to the floor and then getting dragged away. It all happened in a flash, within a second. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Hey - look at me, you’re okay. You’re okay.” Din said to you as he dragged you into his cold, hard chest, engulfing you and trying to calm you down. He had dealt with you like this before, having nightmares every night for a month and panic attacks constantly as a result of your abuse. It was a trial and error for him to figure out what the best way to calm you was, and sure enough he figured out that what worked for you was this. A calm, strong, nice embrace from him was not what he was expecting, but he did it for you. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"I'm - I'm s-sorry - I didn't hear - hear you come in-n-n-n." you stuttered out to him, still trembling as he held you. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"It's not your fault." he said to you slowly. Your shaking form nodded against his chest. Normally by the time you were responsive he would have let go, give you a little bit of space. Today he didn't - felt like he couldn't just yet. He had nearly lost you - could have lost you if he hadn't thought quickly. "Just can't lose you - mean too much to me." </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Din froze. He didn't even know the words left his mouth until he felt you go slightly stiffer under him. It was now his turn to panic as he didn't quite mean for that to come out, ever. That wasn't something that he wanted to deal with right now - not in the slightest.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Your mind was buzzing as well. You had started to gain feelings for the Mandalorian months ago, when you first saw how kind he was under all the armor. You didn't know if you were ready, or if you were ever going to be ready. But lately you had felt like you improved so much from where you were before, that you were considering seeing where he stood. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">After awkwardly getting up and putting the quarry into the carbonite chamber, you had retreated to the bunk to change out of your towel. He didn't talk to you for the rest of the trip until after the quarry had been dropped off, avoiding your gaze when you were with the Child. You eventually made the first move back on him. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"What you said yesterday... I just want you to know I feel the same." you said to him. In moments like these, he truly was terrifying. There was no way to tell how he was feeling so you thanked the maker that the Child started crying about something so you could dash away. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">That was the last you had ever mentioned it, because after that things changed. The forehead touches, the embraces, taking the kid when you were tired; Din had changed for you for the better. He got into the flow of taking high paying jobs whenever he could - which meant that he was gone a lot more than you hoped. You knew he was doing it to be able to provide for all of you the best he could. Sometimes he worked harder to get you actual food rather than just shitty portions. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">It didn't take long for you to move into his bunk. You fought him on the matter - it was one of the only places that he could take his helmet off in the whole ship. But his bunk was better than yours and your back was starting to hurt, so you let him win. There was enough room for the two of you plus the kid got his own 'space' away from the two of you - to your benefit, of course. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He made you feel like you were on top of the world. But when he wasn't around, things got difficult for you. He wasn't there to tell you how beautiful you were when you started to doubt yourself. You had some scars, some from yourself and some from your former spouse. You hated it - hated that after nearly a year from running it was still in the back of your mind. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Why would Din want someone who was scarred like you were? He could easily find someone else, someone perfect, flawless, and yet he chose you. You weren't deserving of him - </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">You sat on the floor by the bed, knees to your chest and head resting on them. You felt your eyes start to grow watery and quickly used your sleeve to wipe them away. Just incase Din came back. It would make him upset to see you cry, it always did. You didn't want to do that, the last time you had upset a partner - </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Well, you ran away from them and ended up with a bounty on your head, and inevitably, here on the Razorcrest.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">You were guilty for feeling like this. Din calls you beautiful all the time, why do you doubt yourself? If he says it and means it, then you should not worry as much as you do. But you do worry, you worry more than what you would like to admit. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">You heard commotion outside of your bunk. Worried that it was the child somehow escaping his cradle and opening the door, you jumped up and into action to find the little monster. But, it was Din by the carbonite chamber instead, finished with the quarry. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"You're back." you said, wiping your eyes again before he turned around. "I thought you were the kid. Thank god you're not or that would mean - "</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"What's wrong?" he asked, cutting you off. So he had noticed.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"N-n-nothing - " you stuttered, trying to cover your tracks. Unfortunately you never were good at lying, or convincing him that you were okay. He saw right through you every single time. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"You're lying. What's wrong, cyar'ika?" Damn him, he knew it melted your heart when he called you that. He took off both his gloves as he came over to you, taking both of his hands into yours. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"I just - when I was in the refresher - I looked at some of my scars - I was hoping they'd be faded but they just look the same to me - got me thinking - why do you - " you skipped the parts where you thought about doing bad things, things that you thought you were over. It didn't matter if you skipped them, because he knew you better than you knew yourself. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"They have faded. Was that it?" he asked. You shook your head. Din knew what the second half of your 'problem' was - you thought he deserved someone better than you. "What can I do to show that you're worthy?" he asked again. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"W-what?" you asked, trembling slightly. That shocked you a bit, you had never heard him say that before. Of course, it did show just how much he knew you because that was what was on your mind at the moment. But the fact that he was asking what <em>he </em>could do for <em>you</em> was something you were not expecting, when it should be the other way around, really. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">You were silent for longer than you would like to admit, your mind moving a million miles a minute, thoughts racing through your mind. Din had an idea, an idea that he couldn't believe himself, that you were going to freak out over. Confirming that the child was asleep, and that the hatch to the ship was shut, he let go of your hands and took a deep breath in. His hands went to the base of his helmet. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">"No - what - Din, stop - " you told him, closing your eyes and throwing your hands over them, for extra precaution. "I'm not - we're not - it shouldn't be me." you said to him in a rush. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He ignored you, continuing to take his helmet off, putting it on the ground beside him. Sure, you had been around him when he had his helmet off, blindfolded. You made him start doing that once you started sharing a bed just so he could get a break from it. But this was different - you were going to see him. It wasn't part of the Creed, he was breaking the rules for you - you weren't worth that. You weren’t his wife - it was against the rules. You weren’t worth that - but to him you were.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He edged himself closer to you, you could feel it. His hand cupped your cheek, the other wrapping around one of your wrists as he leaned in and kissed you. This was another thing that he knew you would melt into, you loved when he kissed you. Din Djarin knew you better than you knew yourself. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Slowly your hands dropped to his arms as his lips were pressed against yours. Truly, you weren’t thinking right now having taken your hands off your eyes, and neither was he. His helmet was off and he was letting you see him. His most vulnerable state - no one had seen him since he was a child he had told you. But yet here you two were.</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Cyar’ika, open your eyes.” His unfiltered voice said to you once his lips left yours, a small whine coming from you. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“But, the Creed - ” you started. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I know.” he said to you. He had thought this through, for a moment at least. He knew what this meant - and he didn’t care. He wouldn’t mention it to anyone. To him, you were apart of his clan with the kid, unofficially. What the rest of the Mandalorians didn’t know wouldn’t hurt them. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">It was time, you concluded with him. You slowly opened your eyes, looking down at the ground first. You took a deep breath. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You’re <em>really </em>sure, Din? Like really?” you asked him one last time. He decided to skip the answer and gently tilt your head up to face him - </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">He was <em>beautiful. </em>Which sounds almost ridiculous, but truly, he was. You knew his hair was curly and brown - you <em>knew </em>it. He was tan, eyes dark brown. He was a little scruffy right now, not having shaved in two weeks from being out, of course. His hair was also matted for the same reason you figured. Why he would chose you to show himself to was beyond you. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“You are the first person to see me since I was a child.” he said to you, putting a strand of your hair behind your ear that had fallen in front of your face. You nodded, about to speak when he continued. “We both have things we’re scared of showing. But I want you to know that I’m not going anywhere, I’m not leaving you. You’ve seen me unmasked now, a Mandalorian’s vulnerable state. I never thought about taking it off before I met you. I just - I wanted you to see me. To show that I love you, more than anything.” Tears were brimming your eyes as he spoke, putting his arms around you and bringing you into his chest. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I’m - I’m sorry. It’s just - well, you know.” you stuttered to him. He pulled you out of his chest and wiped your eyes. You swore you saw water forming in his eyes too but he kissed you before you could be sure. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I do. That’s never gonna happen again. I promise.” </span>
</p>
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